25 Jul 2012

By Allen Brayan at Social Media Today:
Let’s get something straight. No matter how super your app is in
terms of form and function, shoddy marketing can really make it die a
quiet death fast. I say this because the average mobile app developer
does not consider marketing as a major facet of their app deployment
strategy. I mean let’s face it guys. With hundreds of thousands of apps
vying for users’ attention, there must be an art to reaching Top 10 Apps
on the mobile marketplace. And guess what, here’s how u can finally
become king of the App Store / Google Play Store hill.

Traditional marketing tactics be damned, here’s how you can compete with the best of the best

Your mobile app is boring. Until you MARKET it as the best thing since sliced bread.

Get
this through your developer skull. No matter how much you consider your
app to be a fine work of art, it’s boring. But hey, worry not because
that applies to the majority of the apps floating on the app store, even
the top ones.

So here’s a keyword for you engineers and designers out there to latch up on – differentiation.

Work
on setting your app apart from the competitors from the very beginning
of your app developmentphase. Design some unique hooks that can help you
draw a large crowd of users to your app. Adopt some viral marketing
methods - consider posting a humorous video about your app on YouTube to
generate pre-launch hype levels.

Those User Testimonials and Success Stories. Get them!

Ok.
So those users are really starting to use your mobile apps in
interesting ways and you’ve gained fans along the way. That’s a good
thing. Contact them. And I mean really make them feel that they hold the
key to your App Store Salvation. There’s nothing more a user of your
app likes more than getting a direct phone call from you to make them
feel like superstars. Tap into that mindset to get those testimonials
and success stories rolling in.

Now the users really feel like
part of your family and you can reap the dividends manifold. So yes,
your fans are the torch-bearers of your Olympic…. I mean App Store/
Google Play supremacy. Mobile app marketing just got a lot more
personal.

Make your App Global. But Think Local.

Do
not make your app limited to one specific geographical region. I
repeat, focus on all the 7 billion inhabitants of this planet. That’s
all your mobile app’s success will be gauged by – numbers.

So get
started with those translated app descriptions that are specific to the
user’s geographical region. And while you are at it, mobile app
marketing campaigns ought to be local as well. You want that 3x increase
in potential app downloads, go local with marketing.

Pretty nifty
tip here -Your app should support usernames in languages other than
English. I mean imagine a Chinese user pleasantly surprised to find that
our app is rather their app just by including support for the Mandarin script.

What can I say, appearances can be deceiving. Only in this case it’s the good kind of deceiving.

As
mobile app developers, just the right bit of marketing can mean success
and failure in today’s cutthroat competitive app arena. Follow these
words of wisdom and go fight the great app war. And get those million+
downloads in no time.